Home Of The Brave

“Do Easy”

(Jellymould Records JM-JJ005)

Jellymould Records is a relatively new label based in Huddersfield dedicated to documenting the work of musicians based in the North of England. Among their roster are the Manchester based Magic Hat Ensemble (I’ll be taking a look at their new album “Made In Gorton” in due course) and Home Of The Brave, a quartet led by multi reeds player Richard Ormrod of LIMA (Leeds Improvising Musicians Association). Ormrod is joined by the legendary free jazz drummer Paul Hession, double bass virtuoso Rus Pearson and versatile guitarist Jonny Flockton.

“Do Easy” is a celebration of Ormrod and Hession’s long term love of Western movies and the soundtracks of Ennio Morricone and others. Their obsession also extends to TV cowboy programmes such as Gunsmoke, with a version of the theme music from that series appearing here.
The music was recorded live at a performance at 7 Arts, Leeds in May 2010 before being mixed and edited at the Jellymould Studio in Huddersfield.

A parallel to this album is reviewed elsewhere on this site. The Swedish group Oddjob’s record “Clint”, released on the ACT label, is a celebration of the music heard in the various films of Clint Eastwood, both Westerns and urban cop movies. It’s noirish and stylish with a very contemporary edge that includes the use of synthesisers and other electronica. I saw them give a highly effective performance of this and other material at The Vortex, Dalston as part of the 2010 London Jazz Festival.

Home Of The Brave’s approach is very different, more stripped down and rooted firmly in the British free improv tradition. For all this it is not as austere as much free improv and the group bring both structure and an affectionate and very British humour to their investigations of these much loved themes. The latter quality is immediately apparent in the title of the first number “Meanwhile, back at the ranch; Tonto, disguised as a door, gets his knob shot off”. I was guffawing even before the album started to play. The piece is actually a collage of speech, music and sound effects from various cowboy movies linked together as if somebody is trying to tune in a radio or TV. Think of the intro to Dexys Midnight Runners’ “Searching For The Young Soul Rebels” album as an approximate parallel. 

“Meanwhile…” segues into the quartet’s take on the theme from “The Big Country”, Ormrod picking out the germ of the melody above the restless rolling of Hession’s drums. The group then give a muscular statement of the theme before using it as the jumping off point for a free-wheeling improvisation with Ormrod displaying remarkable powers of invention and considerable physical resourcefulness. The piece ends with a brief but intriguing free jazz dialogue between Ormrod and the always inventive and colourful Hession. The drummer is one of the music’s great listeners, reacting to every inflection with exactly the right response and coaxing an impressive array of sounds from a comparatively small kit.

“Do Easy” is very much a multi media piece with snippets of sampled speech cropping up throughout the album. Much of the text comes from the pen of Beat writer William Burroughs from his 1973 short story collection “Exterminator!”. Burroughs’ words are woven into the theme of the “Gunsmoke” television series and incorporate the definition of the “Do Easy” of the album title. The group’s subsequent take on the “Gunsmoke” theme is a good example of their skewed humour, initially an exaggeratedly corny take on the theme before subtly sidling into darker, edgier improvised territory with the dialogue between Flockton and Hession a particular highlight. The closing reiteration of the theme receives an enthusiastic response from the Leeds crowd.

Home Of The Brave take Doris Day’s unbearably perky “The Deadwood Stage” and initially transform it into something noirish and sinister before embarking on a high energy improvisation featuring some gutsy soloing from Ormrod.

The set includes a smattering of originals by members of the group. Pearson’s atmospheric “Cheaper Than Water” includes more sampled dialogue (I’m no film buff so I can’t tell you what movie it comes from) but the musical highlights are Pearson’s bass solo and what sounds like Ormrod’s alto flute above the banjo like clanking of Flockton’s guitar. It’s followed by Ormrod’s brief but energetic “Fresh Horses”, a garrulous sax improvisation above the churning pulse of Hession’s drums and the almost rock chording of Flockton.

“3.10 To Yuma” features the deliciously woody timbres of Ormrod’s bass clarinet on what is essentially a feature for the instrument. Next the theme from “Laramie” is treated as a ballad with surprisingly tender tenor sax from Ormrod alongside Pearson’s deeply resonant bass. It’s strangely beautiful and again draws a great reaction from the live audience.

Sampled movie dialogue and gunshots herald a boisterous “How The West Was One” with high octane soloing from Ormrod and suitably turbo charged accompaniment from the rest of the group. More thoughts from Burroughs on the philosophy of “Do Easy” represent a kind of coda.

“Do Not Forsake Me, O My Darlin’” is given the same kind of sepia tinge as “The Deadwood Stage” with Ormrod’s bass clarinet to the fore. “Buttons And Bows” alternates between exaggerated playfulness and squalls of free jazz noise. All very eccentric, but great fun. The piece concludes with a passage of spooky solo guitar which acts as a bridge into the quartet’s version of Morricone’s “The Man With The Harmonica” which the group tackle in modal, John Coltrane style but with Flockton’s abrasive guitar adding a very contemporary edge. The whole thing is powered by the uninterruptible flow of Hession’s fluid drumming.

Ormrod’s “Mockridge” features his clarinet skills in dialogue with Flockton’s guitar with a naggingly familiar folk melody intruding part way through (I’m probably missing some kind of musical joke here).

More Burroughs introduces the second Morricone piece “La Resa Dei Conti” which contrasts belligerent passages of wailing sax and guitar with an almost subliminal Pearson bass solo. Finally the band romp through the theme to the “Magnificent Seven” kicking off with a flamboyant Hession drum intro then tearing through the piece with unabashed relish. Ormrod is on fire and the rest of the band follow suit negotiating some tricky unison passages with aplomb and building to a rousing climax. The album concludes with some taped outro music and the whooshing sound of a stylus in the grooves of an old vinyl LP. The final sound is that of the playing arm being lifted.

“Do Easy” is obviously a labour of love for Ormrod who handles all the arranging duties. There is some excellent playing here from all four participants and plenty of interesting musical ideas. It’s not a free improv record although the musicians do bring some elements of that to the table. There’s a good mix of light and shade about the playing and arrangements and plenty of humorous moments along the way.

The performance from which “Do Easy” was sourced was obviously a very successful live event. The record too has much to commend it but I suspect that the speech element, which was probably highly effective in a live context, may begin to pall on subsequent listenings. However the interaction between the players suggests that there’s the potential here for further good work in a less contrived and more obviously jazz setting.   

 

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